Nigeria’s HandBall Coach, Agboola Shittu Adewunmi, is optimistic about the country’s chances at the 2024 IHF Women’s U18 Handball World Championship in China.
This marks Nigeria’s first appearance at the global event, following their third-place finish at the 2023 African Women’s Youth Handball Championship. In Monastir, Tunisia, the Nigerian team rebounded from a semi-final loss to eventual champions Egypt by defeating Angola to secure the bronze medal. This victory earned them one of Africa’s slots at the biennial tournament for the first time.
Nigeria are in Group B where they will play Montenegro, Croatia, and African rivals, Angola. Despite being debutants and Africa’s poor showing since the tournament’s inception in Canada in 2006, the veteran coach is confident his team will perform well when the competition begins.
“Based on our consistent performance so far, we have been doing well. Therefore, we are expected to perform well at the World Cup,” Shittu said. “It is important to note that this is the first time the Nigerian women’s team will be participating in this world championship. We are grouped with Montenegro, Angola, and Croatia. Having defeated Angola in the third-place match at the African Championship, we believe we can overcome them again.”
The Handball Federation of Nigeria recently announced an 18-player squad for the world championship, which will take place from August 14th to 25th. Nigeria will begin their campaign against Croatia on August 14th, 2024 at the International Handball Hall in Chuzhou.
When asked if the team could compete with the best in the world, Agboola responded, “The other countries have world-class handball teams, but our team has really come of age. We have a top-class side that can really fight for qualification to the next round. We are really prepared to make an impact. We have never felt pressured, but we are mindful of the need to perform well.”
